Her Royal Highness Princess Haya Al Hussein of Jordan looks set to secure a third term as President of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) after powerbrokers at the world governing body called for a change in its statutes to allow her to stay on beyond the two four-year term limit.
“The Regional Group Chairs, on behalf of their respective National Federations, have put in a formal unanimous request that the FEI Statutes be modified so that the term of the FEI President may include one additional four-year term,” an FEI official told insidethegames. “This would bring the maximum possible number of four-year consecutive terms for an FEI President to three, for a maximum total of 12 years.”
The statement added that the proposal had been sent to all national federations and confirmed any proposed changes to a third term would need to go to a vote before the 2013 FEI General Assembly in Montreux, Switzerland, on November 4-7.
“As a consequence of the petition, signed by all nine of the FEI’s Group Chairs, the change to the FEI Statutes has been proposed for approval by the FEI General Assembly – as part of the consultation process on all FEI rule changes, the proposal was sent to all National Federations on 4 July,” an FEI spokesperson told insidethegames.
If passed, the motion will allow Princess Haya to stand for re-election the following year.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, who is the daughter of the late King Hussein of Jordan and is married to United Arab Emirates ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, became FEI President in 2006.
She saw off competition from Sweden’s Sven Holmberg and Holland’s Henk Rottinghuis and was re-elected with overwhelming support for a second stint in office in November 2010 after implementing more than 80 per cent of the deliverables outlined in her original manifesto in her first term.
Ironically, these included a reform to establish a limit of two consecutive four-year terms for the FEI Presidency.
Inside the Games is an online blog of the London Organizing Committee that staged the 2012 London Games. The blog continues to cover issues that are important to the Olympic Movement. This article is reprinted here with permission of the blog editors.